Fantasy Baseball

Despite the fact that Pablo Sandoval is hitting just .167 through his first three games with the Boston Red Sox, you still have to like him for your DraftKings squad on Friday.

The second full day of the MLB season doesn't exactly have the same luster as Opening Day. Half of the franchises are 0-1, while the other half are undefeated. It does mean that daily fantasy owners already have a better perspective on which stars to choose.

Without question, the Los Angeles Angels' Mike Trout is the most valued player in fantasy baseball. Three of the four mock drafts studied for this article had Trout as the No. 1 pick. The reigning MVP is coming off a season that saw him lead the majors in runs scored and RBI.

His batting average dipped below .300, and he led the league in strikeouts with 184, but there's no questioning his ability to put big numbers up for the Angels and your fantasy team.

Whether you've played before, won a million dollars or have never even heard of DraftKings before now, MLB daily fantasy is for you. Anyone who loves the sport and knows how the game works can succeed with a little time and effort.

Daily fantasy is a huge deviation from regular fantasy baseball in several aspects. Filling out a roster is based on a fixed salary cap of $50,000 per 10-man roster. Each owner chooses two pitchers, a first-baseman or designated hitter and all eight other positions to make a complete lineup.

Two weeks from now, MLB will return in all its glory, leaving precious time for fantasy baseball players to draft a winning squad.

Let's hope you didn't jump the gun on draft day. If so, most of your starting pitchers are already headed to the disabled list, or worse—undergoing Tommy John surgery. 

Pitching depth is usually the key to success for fantasy baseball players, and the best way to compile depth is to take advantage of late-round sleepers with high upside.

Breakouts happen every year. Pinpointing the candidates isn't always easy, as any number of factors can go into the success of young hurlers. Several young arms are on the cusp of reliability from a fantasy standpoint this season.

The start of baseball season not only indicates the beginning of warm weather across the country, it also means there is another sport to compete in daily fantasy.

With competitions just about every day of the regular season, Major League Baseball represents a fun way to compete and potentially make money on a consistent basis.

Of course, it takes a lot of work to be successful in this sport. Even the top hitters and pitchers can have bad games, so you have to figure out how to find players with the best chances to succeed while staying within your budget.

Forget your chores and homework or your nine-to-five responsibilities and honey-do list. With fantasy baseball drafts getting underway in the coming days (that is, if you haven't had yours already), nothing is more important than preparing for your player picking.

(OK, maybe fundamental stuff, like food consumption and basic hygiene, but you get the idea.)

With Opening Day now less than a month away and spring training games officially getting started, fantasy baseball fans are likely gearing up for their respective drafts.

While landing someone like Mike Trout or Clayton Kershaw with your first-round pick is great, it's how you fill out your roster with potential sleepers and high-upside players that usually winds up being the difference between winning and losing.

So, with that in mind, what follows is a look at the top 25 sleepers to target on draft day.